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Yellow Toadflax

Linaria vulgaris

North Dakota Noxious Weed

Yellow toadflax, also referred to as butter-andeggs, jacob’s ladder, common toadflax, toadflax, ommon linaria, and wild snapdragon, is a member of the Scrophulariaceae or figwort family. Yellow toadflax is a herbaceous perennial with stems that are somewhat woody at the base and smooth towards the top of the plant. Stems of yellow toadflax are sparingly branched and usually 1 to 3 feet tall. Leaves are linear, narrow, pointed at both ends, and usually 1 to 2 inches in length. Leaves of the plant are mainly alternate but may appear to be opposite due to crowding. Both stems and leaves are pale green in color. The flowers that grow at the base of the upper leaves resemble a snapdragon, the upper lip is yellow, the corolla is two-lobed, and the lower lip is three-lobed with an orange spot. A long spur is located at the base of the flower and can be as long as the rest of the flower combined. Yellow toadflax seeds are dark brown to black, 1/12 inch in diameter, and flattened with a papery circular wing. Yellow toadflax can be distinguished from Dalmatian toadflax by leaf structure. Yellow toadflax has narrow linear leaves and Dalmatian toadflax has broad, heart-shaped leaves.